By CHICAGO — Beyond Meat Inc. is preparing to launch a sliced-steak product, expanding the company’s lineup of plant-based meat alternatives as it works to boost languishing sales.
The California-based company plans to launch the steak product this year in retail stores and eventually in restaurants, Chief Executive Ethan Brown said Tuesday at The Wall Street Journal’s Global Food Forum. The sliced steak is intended to replicate whole pieces of meat, versus the company’s existing products that mimic sausages, tenders, burger patties and meatballs.
“It’s probably one of our best products to date,” Brown said.
Beyond
BYND,
-5.56%
has struggled recently. The plant-based, meat-alternative maker reported widening losses in recent quarters because of increased investment in its operations or weaker demand for its products in supermarkets. Uncertainty around faux meat’s broader growth prospects have also weighed on the company. Beyond’s stock price has fallen about 85% in the past 12 months.
Brown said Beyond’s mission to make meatless versions of beef, pork or poultry products that are indistinguishable from animal protein remains intact, as the company strives to address issues such as climate change.
An expanded version of this report appears on WSJ.com.
Also popular on WSJ.com:
Rural counties are booming, but can it last?
Elon Musk got Twitter’s data dump, next comes the hard part.
